Research carefully before you buy a Powershift gearbox
Update on my Power shift gearbox woes:
After the V50 went in to Volvos for the second time with an occasional "Transmission Performance Low" problem it played up again the next morning. I was told that Volvo cannot repair these boxes and do not offer reconditioned units.My only way forward is a new box for more than £4000
I wrote an email to Volvo in Sweden and got an astonishingly quick reply from the head of customer relations in the UK. This asked where I bought the car and how many miles it had done. I replied that I bought it from an independent specialist and it has covered 90,000 miles.
It seems that this mileage is above that which is covered by goodwill policy. This is fair enough, but as per my letter to them, my 4 year old car is only worth about £8000. By the time it is 7 or 8 years old a minor gearbox issue could make it a financial write-off.
Volvo has a hard earned and enviable reputation for long lasting cars. We were torn between buying a small car brand new or a better built car second hand. It looks as though we made a bad decision in this case.
Assuming not many of these gearboxes have failed so far, I am surprised Volvo are not willing to help out in order to protect their good name. How many people will buy a car for £4000 or less knowing that a minor gearbox fault could make it worthless at any moment?
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